Get your fiesta on with this zesty cilantro lime quinoa. Gloriously gluten-free, vegan, and just plain delicious! Makes a great side dish or burrito bowl base.
Morning loves!
Today’s post is going to be a bit of a quickie, just like this recipe!
Everyone needs an arsenal of fast, easy, and healthy side dishes so get ready to toss this one into the weekly line-up.
With the refreshing flavors of cilantro and lime, this fluffy quinoa will compliment a bevvy of dishes and knock your typical pot-o-rice out of the water when taco night rolls around. I’m already dreamingup a behemoth burrito bowl with this sassy quinoa as the base. YUM!
Cilantro Lime Quinoa
vegetarian :: vegan :: gluten-free :: dairy-free
3 cups of fluffy quinoa fit for a fiesta!
Need a little less? Feel free to halve the recipe! Feeding a crowd? You can easily double or triple as needed with no additional work. SCORE! Just grab a large enough pot and you’re good to go! Leftovers taste great and can chill in your fridge for up to 4 days.
So… what are you waiting for? Let’s get our cilantro lime quinoa on!
Cilantro Lime Quinoa
Get your fiesta on with this zesty cilantro lime quinoa. Each bowl is gloriously gluten-free, vegan, and just plain delicious as side dish, salad topper, or burrito bowl base.
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry quinoa (rinsed)
- 1.5 cups water
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves plus extra to taste
- 1/2 lime, zest and juice (see notes)
- 1-2 TBSP olive oil or avocado oil
- salt + pepper to taste
Instructions
- First rinse and drain your quinoa using a mesh strainer or sieve.
- Bring a medium saucepan to medium heat and lightly toast the quinoa to remove any excess water. Stir as it toasts for just a few minutes. This step is optional but really adds to the nuttiness and fluff factor of the quinoa!
- Next add your water, set burner to high, and bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer, covered with the lid slightly ajar, for 12-13 minutes or until quinoa is fluffy and the liquid has been absorbed.
- Add chopped cilantro, lime juice, lime zest and oil and season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Toss to combine and taste.
- Add any extra cilantro, lime, or seasoning that your heart desires and dig in!
- Leftovers taste great and can be stored in the fridge for up to four days.
- The quinoa will soak up the lime and oil so, to amp up the flavor, add a little extra dressing the next day and you're good to go! A scoop or two makes a fabulous salad topper or a flavor-filled base for a yummy burrito bowl! I seriously can't get enough of this stuff!
Recipe Notes
Craving intense citrus flavor? Add the juice and zest of the entire lime!
Nutrition facts below are an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. Adjust as needed.
Serve it hot or chilled (my favorite!) but whatever you do… get this citrus-flecked cilantro lime quinoa your face, stat!
serving suggestions + such
- Making stuffed peppers? Taco-fy your filling and use cilantro lime quinoa in place of the rice. Easy peasy
lemonlime squeezy! - You can even try them in these Baked Bell Pepper Tacos!
- Get your carnivore on by serving it up with grilled chicken and peppers or keep things vegan by topping your quinoa with these taco roasted chickpeas.
Basically… anything goes!
Have fun with it and feel free to share a photo of your creation!
Linda Nortje
I can never have enough side dish recipes ! Love your Cilantro Lime Quinoa and will be adding the recipe to our menu !
Sandi
I love this quinoa salad with all of that yummy fresh lime. Can’t wait to try this out at our next cookout!
Dawha
I just made this recipe and I add some nutmeg and avocado AMAZING !!!
Thank you
Farhaana
Can I just use a whole cut up chicken and then pick off the meat from the bones near the end, then throw the meat back in?
Jenn @ Peas and Crayons
Hey Christina!
Pop it in raw and it will cook in the pot and come out super tender/juicy. It shreds easiest after four hours or more in the pot. Hope you looooove it!
Christina Schaa
This is my first time cooking chicken in a crockpot. Do I cook the chicken first or do I put it in uncooked?
Candice
I made this for my in laws and my family this past weekend….SMASH HIT!!! This is delicious, and once you get all the ingredients in, it cooks itself. This is a must try. It may have a lot of ingredients, but it is well worth it. Thank you for this recipe!
Jenn @ Peas and Crayons
So glad you loved it! The roasted corn is brilliant!!! I’ve only ever added straight-from-the-freezer sweet corn to it but roasted sounds purely dreamy! I’ll try that! Thanks!
Justina Lee Photography
This has been cooking away for the past two hours in my crock pot and I can hardly wait to taste!!!! Smells divine!!!
Sarah
BTW. i made the recipe this weekend and everyone loved it!!! Thanks so much for sharing 🙂 it was delicious!! I added some roasted corn to it.. mmm
Jenn @ Peas and Crayons
Yay!!!! So excited you’ll be making it! Hope you love it as much as I do! Xo
Jenn @ Peas and Crayons
So. Many. Servings. Somewhere between 4 and 5 quarts worth. We have it for lunch a few days in a row and freeze the rest for “fast food” on busy days! I’d say at least 12-14 cups total.
Sarah
Btw whats the serving size for this recipe?
Sarah
Omgosh this looks delicious!!! I am going to get the ingredients and make this today!! Thanks for sharing!!
Jenn @ Peas and Crayons
The olive oil adds a little extra flavor; feel free to leave it out! I typically add a little to all of my recipes and added it to this one out of habit and loved the results =)
Kris Thulin Wise
What’s the olive oil for?
Jenn @ Peas and Crayons
Absolutely! It should cook up fabulously on low for 6-8 hours! =)
Courtney
Will this cook the same on Low setting for longer hours?
Meghan@CleanEatsFastFeets
I just did this same combo with brown rice. Genius idea to use quinoa. I might have tried that, except I made four cups of dry rice for a recipe that calls for 4 cups of cooked rice. Oops, I ended up with 12 cups of cooked rice. Ha, ha. Oh well, it all went into delicious things…cilantro lime rice included.
Shashi Charles
YUM! lime+cilantro+quinoa=total YUM!
Brittany Trentham
oh my… this looks amazing! Totally making this over the weekend!
FraijoManda
Sweet! I seriously love cilantro lime RICE, I’m not sure why I haven’t thought to do it with quinoa. You are the twistomexicanerrything goddes I’m sure of it.
Julianna @ Julianna Bananna
this sounds so good! would be perfect for a mexican burrito bowl.
Tiffany @ The Chi-Athlete
Yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yummmmmm!
Amanda
This looks so good! I feel the urge to run right to the store and make it tonight!
Katie @ Live Half Full
Yum! I’m going to make this alongside some Siracha wings for Superbowl!
Christine
This looks wonderful, I adore cilantro but have not been using it much lately for some reason. Adding it to my list, thanks!
Dana @ Conscious Kitchen Blog
Reminds me of good old Chipotle which is one of my favorite foods to recreate at home. This sounds like a perfect, quick side dish!
Jana Antil
This looks so good! I have made homemade Chipotle bowls at home and created a similar recipe to this one for it! Cilantro and like is so so good!
jillian
yummmm i love me some cilantro (and lime!) xo jillian – cornflake dreams
lindsay cotter
you had me at quickie… i mean quinoa. 😉
Alysia @ Slim Sanity
This sounds delicious! I love quinoa, I don’t buy it often enough though! PINNED
Maryea {happy healthy mama}
Cilantro+lime for the win!! Love this.
Claire
Wow Jenn this looks gorgeous! Love the sound of the flavours with the quinoa – lime, coconut and coriander (as we UK folk call it) are such a winning combo.
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